Brown Sugar Shortbread
Posted by: Teapots n More on: September 26, 2011
For your Autumn tea, try this easy & deliciously rich cookie with the taste of buttery caramels. It’s certain to become a year round favorite!
Makes about 3 dozen.
1 cup softened butter (no margarine)
½ cup packed brown sugar
2 ¼ cups flour
1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar.
2. Gradually stir in flour. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, about 3 minutes.
3. Pat into a 3/8″ thick rectangle measuring 11″ by 8″ (about the size of a sheet of lined paper).
4. Cut into 2″ by 1″ strips. Place 1″ apart on ungreased baking sheets. Prick with a fork.
5. Bake for 25 minutes or until bottom begins to brown. Remove from oven and cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes then remove to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container 1-2 weeks or freeze for 3-4 months.
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Lemonade Tea aka The Arnold Palmer
Posted by: Teapots n More on: July 29, 2011
Lemonade Tea
When suffering through the hot days of Summer, nothing is more refreshing to me than an icy glass of Lemonade Tea, also known as the Arnold Palmer. It’s easy to make and I’ve never known a tea drinker who turned down a glass.
Some serve this tea drink already mixed in a 50/50 proportion like the recipe below. Others bring separate pitchers of lemonade and tea to the table, then let their guests create their own mix according to preference. Either way, it’s a winning drink!
Lemonade Tea Makes 2 quarts.
4 cups prepared lemonade
4 cups prepared strong black tea
Lemon slices or wedges
Fresh mint leaves, optional
1. In a large pitcher, pour tea into lemonade and refrigerate until ready to serve.
2. When serving, pour over ice and garnish with lemon slices and mint leaves.
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Introducing Karen Bell Watercolors
Posted by: Teapots n More on: July 25, 2011
Tea and Roses by Karen Bell
A few weeks back, we reintroduced the internationally acclaimed art of Marty Bell. We’d now like to introduce nationally acclaimed watercolor artist, Karen Bell.
Karen, a California native, finds unique inspiration in the mystery and beauty nature, flowers in particular. Her natural eye for dramatic contrast in light and shadow combined with the soft translucence of watercolor, make her subjects appear to bloom off the page in bold, vivid hues.
Irresistible by Karen Bell
This exciting artist has honed her skills under many watercolor masters. She credits two classic masters as important sources of inspiration: Claude Monet for his use of light and Georgia O’Keeffe for her dramatic use of color and subject. The influence of these masters is especially effective in her still life subjects.
Her extraordinary paintings are displayed in many fine galleries and personal collections. We recommend to you the dramatic and beautiful art of Karen Bell: a masterful watercolorist!
Morning Light by Karen Bell
Are you interested is purchasing Karen Bell Fine Art? You’re invited to visit Teapots ‘n More and browse our growing selection of Karen Bell fine art prints.
Silver Plate vs. Nickel Plate?
Posted by: Teapots n More on: July 8, 2011
Acorn Demi Spoons
Once or twice a year, I pull out my lovely silver plated demi spoons for a special tea party. I already know how they’re going to look even though I carefully packed them in a silver cloth. Silver tarnishes and that’s just the way it is!
It’s not a terrible thing, but I always say “good thing, I don’t mind the polishing or these babies would be gone!” Polishing the silver is a labor of love and part of the preparation for a special event. However, there are ladies who don’t want the extra fuss. Is there an alternative to silver or silver plate?
There is indeed! Nickel plated tea accessories are showing up in the market place this year. The price is good and the look is so similar to silver plate that you’d have a difficult time telling the difference. So, which is better?
There isn’t really a clear cut upside to either silver or nickel plating. It really comes down to your own preferences.
As previously stated, silver plate and nickel plate have a very similar coloring and brightness. Although, nickel can appear a little brighter. The obvious difference is the tarnishing aspect of silver whereas nickel doesn’t tarnish so no polishing is required. That, in itself, is a big plus for some gals.
Cake & Pastry Tongs
The debate over nickel plate vs. silver plate seems to be most rigorous when discussing musical instruments or jewelry findings. Silver plate is considered more durable for musical instruments such as flutes or horns. In regard to wearing jewelry, one of the more common metal allergies is to nickel.
In my opinion, the durability and allergy questions aren’t particularly important to our discussion. In the average home, demi spoons are usually only used a few times a year: not enough to worry about durability and not enough skin contact to worry about allergies.
So, let’s sum up! The color of silver and nickel plate is very similar. Durability and allergies don’t really matter in regard to demi spoons, tea service or serving pieces. In the end, it comes down to silver tarnish. If you’re fussy about polishing silver, go with the nickel plate. If you don’t mind cleaning the tarnish, go for the silver. Either way, your table is going to be lovely!
Are you planning a tea party? You’re invited to visit Teapots ‘n Moreand browse our latest selection of English bone china teapots, tea sets, tea accessories and antique tea cups.
Two Classic English Tea Cakes
Posted by: Teapots n More on: June 24, 2011
If you’re a regular reader, it comes as no surprise that we are big fans of the English tea tradition and especially tea with sweets. This week’s focus is on a few of our favorite classic English tea cake recipes: Victoria Sandwich Cake and Battenburg Cake. We hope you’ll give them a try and share your results with us!
Victoria Sandwich Cake
Victoria Sandwich Cake, or Victoria Sponge Cake, is said to have been named after Queen Victoria who favored this cake with her afternoon tea. The first known recipe was printed in an 1874 edition of Mrs. Beeton’s Cookery and Household Management.
The cake is made up of two layers of sponge cake with any seedless jam or marmalade and whipped cream in the middle. When cake is sandwiched with jam only, it is called a Jam Cake.
Battenburg Cake
Battenburg Cake has been reported as the wedding cake created for the 1884 marriage of Queen Victoria’s granddaughter to Louis of Battenberg, a German prince. The four squares of its unique checkerboard design represent the four princes of Germany at that time.
The cake is actually quite charming. It consists of two square sections of pink sponge cake put together with two square sections of yellow sponge cake. The sections are “glued” together with apricot jam and wrapped in a layer of marzipan.
Below you’ll find links to classic English recipes and tips for these delicious cakes. We admit the recipes are extra work. However, once you’ve done it, the results are worth the effort!
Tips:
- A kitchen scale will be helpful, since ingredients are often weighed out instead of measured in English recipes.
- Castor sugar is superfine sugar. You can make it by whirling granulated white sugar in your food processor to a finer consistency.
- Golden castor sugar is less refined. You can make an acceptable equivalent by whirling Turbinado, Raw or Demerara sugar in your food processor to a fine consistency. You can also substitute regular granulated white sugar as noted above.
- For Victoria Sandwich Cake, whipped cream or buttercream frosting may be used in the filling. We prefer whipped cream and seedless raspberry or apricot jam.
- A 190 C oven is about 375 degrees F, a 180 C oven is about 350 degrees F, a 170 C oven is about 325 degrees F. A 160 C oven is between 325-300 degrees F. American sponge cake recipes bake at 350 degrees F. We recommend trying both recipes at 350 F the first time, but keep a close eye on it as actual oven temperatures vary.
- A Battenburg Cake Pan is helpful when making this cake. They appear to be available only from England. See an Amazon UK listing for this product by clicking on the above highlighted link.
Victoria Sandwich Cake Recipe:
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1997/classic-victoria-sandwich
Battenburg Cake Recipe:
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1120657/battenberg-cake
Are you planning a tea party? You’re invited to visit Teapots ‘n More and browse our latest selection of bone china teapots, tea accessories, tea cups, tea miniatures and english bone china tea sets.
Rediscovering Marty Bell
Posted by: Teapots n More on: June 17, 2011
Three Pots of Daisies
As a child, three small paintings were artistically displayed in our kitchen. They were floral subjects on pieces of distressed wood: three pots of white daisies, a yellow rose tree and a close up of yellow daisies. These art pieces were special to my mom because they had been painted by a friend.
Years later as a new bride, my husband and I came upon an art display at a local mall. Romantic English cottages and victorian ladies were showcased. The flowers in one particular print caught my eye. They reminded me of those kitchen paintings and, feeling nostalgic, we went to find the artist. I was surprised to find she was my mother’s friend, but now more accomplished and growing in popularity. She remembered me, of course, and said she wanted to paint my face. I demured thinking she was just being kind. It was 1982 and this was the day we purchased our first Marty Bell.
The Gamekeepers Cottage
Marty Bell found her love for art early in life, but she found her high school art teachers didn’t offer the support and direction she wanted. In her words, “Our teachers would ask us to draw still lifes, like a broken tricycle or a baseball bat. These have their place, but who would want them on their wall forever? I would work with that for awhile and then I would start playing on my own with the paints. This is where I would get into trouble.”
After marrying and starting a family, she picked up art classes again. Her first teacher really encouraged individual creativity and eventually Marty started her own art school. In 1974, after traveling throughout England, Marty painted a few English scenes which promptly sold. From that point on, her life was not the same. Many paintings were selling even before she could complete them and what began as a hobby, had become a thriving art business. Her creations were sought by collectors, decorators and design firms. She gained international popularity and is considered the premiere painter of the English countryside.
Shefield Roses
With her passion for beauty, color and style, Marty Bell was a prolific and influential artist. Her work has been internationally collected and she enjoyed the respect of both her peers and fine art collectors. In her lifetime, Marty painted more than 3,000 oil paintings ranging from old English cottages and California landscapes to impressionistic pieces and colorful still lifes.
Her artistic vision continues to appeal to fine art collectors evoking a blend of warmth & nostalgia as attractive today as it was 35+ years ago. Those original three small paintings still hang, artistically displayed, in my mother’s kitchen and I still love my own Marty Bell prints.
Now, we invite you to rediscover the art of Marty Bell.
Miss Elizabeth's Door
Do you have a faded Marty Bell Print?
You may have Marty Bell canvas prints that have faded over time. For the early prints, this is not uncommon. Bell Fine Art has a service available for the restoration of faded prints. Please contact us at customerservice@teapotsnmore.com for more information.
Are you interested is purchasing Marty Bell Fine Art? You’re invited to visit Teapots ‘n More and browse our growing selection of Marty Bell fine art prints.
Tea Bag Folding
Posted by: Teapots n More on: June 9, 2011
Tea Bag Medallion, picture by Paperfacets
For our “crafty” friends, we came across a charming idea using tea bag papers. It’s called Tea Bag Folding: a combination of origami type folds with tea bag papers to create lovely medallions and rosettes. One happy caution: Tea Bag Folding is a whole world unto itself!
We can see many applications for these artistic creations such as decorations for thank you cards, invitations or book marks. How about using tea bag medallions as decorations for your tea table or maybe have a lesson in tea bag folding as an ice breaker for your tea party? You could even create a tea bag folding starter kit as a home made hostess gift!
Bookmark Ideas, picture by Paperfacets
We’ve included a few trusted links to some very well done articles on Tea Bag Folding with lots of examples, history, beginner lessons, patterns, paper purchasing tips and other resources. We hope you enjoy our discovery and will share some of your creations and ideas with us!
Tea Bag Folding and Pattern Instructions
Websites for the Craft of Tea Bag Folding
Tea Bag Folding Butterfly Card
Tea Bag Folding for Children and Beginners
Are you planning a tea party? You’re invited to visit Teapots ‘n More and browse our latest selection of teapots, tea accessories, teacups, tea miniatures and elegant tea sets.
Almond Lover’s Scone Recipe
Posted by: Teapots n More on: June 3, 2011
Almond Lover's Scones
We present for your baking & eating pleasure, our new Almond Scone recipe featuring marzipan, almonds and almond extract. Serve them with clotted cream and cherry preserves, pear conserve, orange marmalade or even Nutella!
Almond Lover’s Scones
Makes 24 small scones, 1 1/4 inch (our favorite size) or 10-12 scones, 2 inch or 8-12 wedges.
2 cups flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. baking powder (Yes, that is a Tablespoon.)
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. almond extract
8 Tbsp. butter
8 Tbsp. (4 fl. oz.) milk
1/2 c. marzipan or almond paste, diced small
4 Tbsp. sliced almonds, divided in half, crushed small using fingers
2 Tbsp. granulated sugar for topping
Almond & Sugar Mixture
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Sift together first 4 ingredients in a large bowl.
Make Ahead Option #1: At this point, you can turn the oven off and seal this mix in an airtight container (such as a plastic bag) and store for up to 6 months in a cool, dry place. When ready to use, place mix in a large bowl and proceed with step 2. You’ll have tea & scones within a 1/2 hour if you multi-task on the tea. 
2. Cut butter into dry ingredients until approximately the size of peas. Add the diced marzipan and two Tbsp. of the sliced & crushed almonds. In a separate bowl, mix together the remaining 2 Tbsp. of almonds and 2 Tbsp. granulated sugar.
Flour Mix with Marzipan & Almonds
3. Measure out milk and add in almond extract. Pour the almond milk into dry mix and stir to moisten. Dough should be moist enough to form a soft ball, but not sticky. If needed, additional milk may be added 1-2 teaspoons at a time.
4. Turn dough onto a lightly floured cutting board and press out with hand to approximately 1/2 inch thickness. Tip: Do not knead dough and use as little flour as possible to keep the dough from sticking to the board.
Cutting out the scones
5. Cut into desired shapes and place on a lightly greased baking sheet. Lightly brush tops with milk if desired. Sprinkle with previously prepared almond & sugar mix, reserving some for a second dusting after the scones are baked. Tip: If using a biscuit cutter or glass, dip the cutting edge in flour first.
Make Ahead Option #2: At this point, place your scones on a cookie sheet and freeze. When completely frozen, wrap scones well in plastic wrap and foil. Well wrapped scones will keep at least one month. When ready to use, proceed to step six, using frozen scones. Do not thaw first. You’ll have scones in about 20 minutes! 
Almond Scones ready to bake
6. Bake for 10-20 minutes depending on size. The 1 1/4 inch scone will be done in approximately 10-13 minutes. Scones are done when lightly golden and the center springs back. Sprinkle again with remaining almond sugar mix while scones are still hot for visual appeal. Best served within 1 day of baking with butter or clotted cream and jam. Store in airtight container if serving later in the day. Tip: When baking, start checking your scones at the minimum baking time. You can always bake longer, but overdone is ruined.
Are you planning a tea party? You’re invited to visit Teapots ‘n More and browse our latest selection of bone china teapots, tea accessories, tea cups, tea miniatures and english bone china tea sets.
Egg Salad Pinwheels
Posted by: Teapots n More on: May 19, 2011
Egg Salad Pinwheel Sandwiches
This is one of our favorite tea sandwiches for spring and summer. We’ve also got a yummy Egg Salad with Ham variation at the end of this recipe. We hope you enjoy it!
Egg Salad Pinwheels
1 large loaf of Bakery Bread, sliced horizontally
3 cups of egg salad**
24-30 small green olives, drained
Softened butter or margarine
1. Discard top and bottom slices of bread loaf. Slice crusts off of each remaining horizontal slice to form a long rectangle.
2. Slightly flatten each slice with a rolling pin. Lightly butter one side of bread slice.
3. Spread a thin layer of egg salad over buttered side of bread. (Spread egg salad almost to edges.)
4. Lay a row of olives across one short end of bread slice. Roll bread over olives and continue to roll to end of slice. (Like a jelly roll.)
5. Wrap roll snugly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 3-4 hours or overnight. (This will help the roll hold it’s shape.) Continue with remaining bread slices.
6. Remove plastic and slice rolls into 1/2 inch thick sandwiches, 6-8 slices per roll. Makes 24-32 sandwiches depending on how many slices of bread you have and how thick you cut the sandwiches.
**Classic Egg Salad Recipe
(Makes 3-4 cups)
1 dozen eggs, hard boiled and shelled
4-5 teaspoons of sweet pickle relish
1/2 cup of finely chopped celery
1/2 cup of finely chopped onion
Salt and Pepper to taste
Approximately 1/2 cup mayonnaise
1-2 tablespoons mustard
1. Grate eggs into a bowl. Add relish, celery, onion, salt and pepper. Mix well.
2. Add mayonnaise 1-2 large tablespoons at a time until moist and creamy.
3. Add mustard to taste. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Egg Salad with Ham Recipe Variation
(makes 3-4 cups)
Pinwheels aren’t just for classic egg salad, try adding finely diced ham for a delightful Egg Salad with Ham Pinwheel. Follow directions above and substitute 1 cup of finely diced ham for sweet pickle relish, Dijon mustard for regular mustard and 1/4 cup finely chopped green onion for regular onion.
Are you planning a tea party? You’re invited to visit Teapots ‘n More and browse our latest selection of bone china teapots, tea accessories, tea cups, tea miniatures and english bone china tea sets.
Strawberry Freezer Jam
Posted by: Teapots n More on: May 13, 2011
If you’ve got a freezer, you can store this easy, fresh tasting jam!
2 cups crushed strawberries*
4 cups granulated sugar
1 package sure-jell pectin, powdered form
3/4 cup water
*Tip: For 2 cups crushed strawberries, use approximately 4 cups fresh strawberries, hulled, sliced and crushed.
1. Stir sugar into crushed strawberries and let sit for 10 minutes.
2. While strawberries are “sitting”, bring powdered pectin and water to a rolling boil, stirring constantly. Boil 1 minute.
3. Add while hot to strawberries. Stir about 3 minutes until sugar is dissolved.
4. Pour into sterile 1 cup (8 oz) containers that have a tight fitting lid. Do not place lid on containers.
5. Let stand for 24 hours at room temperature lightly covered with wax paper. You want any steam to escape as jam cools so don’t tightly cover the containers.
6. Tightly seal, removing as much air as possible. Keeps in refrigerator for 2 weeks or in the freezer for 6 months.
Makes about 3 cups.
See the short video below for good visual instructions.
Are you planning a tea party? You’re invited to visit Teapots ‘n More and browse our latest selection of teapots, tea accessories, teacups, tea miniatures and elegant tea sets.
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